[Jiggs McGee]

JULY 9, 1945

ROSTERS SET FOR TUESDAY STARS GAME

The squads have been named for the 13th edition of baseball's mid-summer classic. The All-Star game returns to its roots as the contest will be held in Chicago for the first time since the inaugural game in 1933. That game was held in Whitney Park but this time around it will be contested in Cougars Park, the fancy newish Chicago Cougars stadium that was not even built the last time the stars of the sport gathered in the Windy City for an association vs association showdown.

The Federal Association won that first game -held July 6, 1933- by an 8-5 score and it featured 2-hit performances by a 27 year old Philadelphia Sailors infielder named Jack Cleaves and a third year Philadelphia Keystones outfielder from a famous ballplaying family by the name of Bobby Barrell. Thirteen years later both of those names, along with Al Wheeler -who went 0 for 2 in that first stars game- will head to Chicago once more for the latest version of the star-studded spectacle, although Cleaves will not play due to a minor back issue.

The Continental Assoiciation will be missing two starters from it's lineup as Chicago Cougars outfielder Cliff Moss will join Cleaves on the sidelines. The Federal Stars lead the series 7 wins to 5 including a 1-0 victory at Washington's Columbia Stadium last year.

Among the 1945 All-Stars are 2 war veterans as George Garrison of the Toronto Wolves and the New York Stars Dixie Lee are each named to the squad after being discharged over the winter. The Cincinnati Cannons lead the way with 7 players selected to the all-star game including Tom Bird, who along with Bobby Barrell of the Philadelphia Keystones, were selected for a record 10th game each.

MOST ALL-STAR SELECTIONS
10* Tom Bird        Chiefs
10* Bobby Barrell   Keystones
9   Frank Vance     Detroit
8   John Lawson     Military Service Cougars
7   Adam Mullins    Military Service -Cincinnati 
7   George Cleaves  Military Service- Pittsburgh
7   Fred McCormick  Toronto
7   Harry Barrell   Military Service- Boston
7   Hank Barnett    Military Service- Cougars
7   Ron Rattigan    Chiefs
6*  Dean Astle      Boston
6*  Pete Day        Boston
6   Pablo Reyes     Military Service -Pittsburgh
6   Moxie Pidgeon   Pittsburgh
 * selected for 1945 ASG

ALL-STAR SELECTIONS BY TEAM (#of All-Star games)
CINCINNATI- 7 Tom Bird (10), Al Wheeler (5), Tom Barrell (4), Deuce Barrell (4), Jack Cleaves (4), Gail Gifford (4), Denny Andrews (1)
BOSTON- 5 Dean Astle (6), Pete Day (6), Chick Donnelly (5) Duke Hendricks (1), Bill Van Ness (1)
COUGARS- 5 Skipper Schneider (5), Cliff Moss (4), Ben Curtin (3), Don Lee (1), Rusty Petrick (1)
MONTREAL- 4 Jake Hughes (4), Bill Greene (1), Gordie Perkins (1), Pat Weakley (1)
KEYSTONES-4 Bobby Barrell (10), George M Brooks (2), Tim Walters (2), John Busby (1)
ST LOUIS- 4 Al Tucker (4), Larry Gregory (1), Cal Page (1),Hal Sharp (1)
TORONTO-4 Charlie Artuso (3), George Garrison (2), Walt Pack (2), Cookie Myers (1)
WASHINGTON- 4 Lou Ellertson (3), Dan Everett (2), Sig Stofer (2), Larry Colaianna (2)
DETROIT-3 Joe Henry (2), Hank Grant (1),Jimmy Long (1)
NY STARS- 3 Dixie Lee (1), Eli Panneton (1), Howie Smith (1)
NY GOTHAMS- 2 Ed Bowman (3), Harry Carter (1)
PITTSBURGH- 2 Johnny McDowell (3), Bill Anderson (1)
SAILORS- 2 Bill Watson (2), Win Lewis (1)
BROOKLYN- 1 Vernon Ruch (2)
CHIEFS- 1 Bob Martin (3)
CLEVELAND- 1 Brooks Meeks (1),

A WEEK OF STREAKS

Hot and cold is the story this week in both the Federal and Continental Associations and as the teams hit the All-Star break the Detroit Dynamos and Toronto Wolves are each at the top of the mountain staring down. They do not need to look far as both the Philadelphia Keystones and Cincinnati Cannons sit just a half game out in their respective associations. In the Fed, there are two other teams within 2 games of the front-running Motor City nine.

Both of the leaders come into the break on a tear with each riding a 6-game winning streak. The Wolves have won 9 of their last 10 after dropping 6 of their previous 7 and use that strong showing to once more overtake Cincinnati for the Continental lead -a race that has gone back and forth and shows no signs of changing that trend over the final two and a half months of the season. Toronto's 4-game sweep of the third place Chicago Cougars going into the break put a real damper on the All-Star celebrations for the host club and leaves the Cougars 5 games back of the Wolves.

The Philadelphia Keystones were the hot team in the Fed with a 27-10 record from the start of May stretching into mid-June but are 9-17 since the middle of June including finishing off last week with 6 straight losses. Detroit had the early lead before the Keystones took over, but the Dynamos -with 6 straight and 9 wins in their last 12 games- are back on top. The team to watch in the second half may just be the surprising St Louis Pioneers who now, despite a 15-29 start to the season, are just 1 game back and are 27-5 since June 5. The Washington Eagles have, for the most part, avoided any extreme streaks -either good or bad- and remain in the mix in no small part due to the pitching of all-stars Lou Ellertson (12-4, 1.85) and Dan Everett (8-5, 1.85).

Further down in the Fed standings you also have a pair of streaking teams going in opposite directions as the New York Gothams reeled off 10 straight victories while the Boston Minutemen lost 10 in a row.

TALES FROM THE WOLVES DEN

Wolves End Trip on High Note -Toronto finished their 24 games straight away from Dominion Stadium in fine fashion taking 7 of 8 from Montreal and Chicago. This allowed the team to finish the trip, which started poorly, with a 13-11 record reclaiming a slender lead in the CA. The starting pitchers have seemed to turn a corner with tossing two complete games over the week, while the opposition only tallied 14 runs in the 8 games. Manager Call remarked that the staff is coming along, getting closer to his pre-season expectations but need the 3 day break for the All-Star Game to recharge batteries. When asked about leading the CA at the halfway point Call quipped "Better than looking up at the leader, this race is a long, long way from over. We just have to keep playing solid ball, worrying about our game not others."

The only loss during the week could just have easily been a victory. In the first game of a July 4th doubleheader the Saints claimed the game, 2-1, when in the bottom of the 12th when Gus Hull's errant throw from right field allowed the winning run to cross the plate. Wirtz tossed a masterful complete game in the night cap to make the long train trip into Chicago more enjoyable than brooding over a tough loss. Toronto sweeping the Cougars at Cougars Field was indeed a surprise as the Wolves entered the series with a 2-5 record while playing Chicago in 1945. Toronto now has a winning season record against 6 of 7 opponents, Cleveland has held the Wolves to a 6-6 mark.

Toronto returned home without Garrison, Meyer, Pack, Artuso who remained in Chicago for the mid-season classic. Wolves will now be home for the next 22 games not leaving until after a game against Cleveland on August 1st. We are hearing that the team is seeking a right handed bat for the outfield to at least spell Gus Hull. Hull's .194/.278/.262 is not getting the job done thus far in '45. Call continues to experiment with lineups in an attempt maximize Fred McCormick's bat. McCormick is doing McCormick things since his return for the war, ..308/.463/.529 17 RBI in 134 PA.

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES?

As we hit the all-star break and celebrate the invitation of 7 Cannons to the big game in Chicago, one can't help but wonder if this Cincinnati club has blown a great opportunity and should be comfortably in front at the top of the Continental Association instead of looking up at the Toronto Wolves. It's only a half game back and oh so much better than the 9.5 games behind the Chicago Cougars that the Cannons found themselves at this time last year but you can't help but think there should have been more from their first half of the season this time around.

The Cannons lead all of FABL, not just the CA, in most runs scored, fewest surrendered, batting average, homeruns, starting pitcher era and defensive efficiency. They have scored 410 runs - 39 more than the Wolves. They have surrendered 277 runs which is 34 fewer than the Wolves. The Cannons run differential at the midway point is +133. The Wolves are the only team in either association within 99 runs of that mark and Toronto is 73 behind, a pace of nearly a run a game.

By all accounts Toronto is outperforming it's expected record this season and the Cannons are underachieving- and doing so more than any other club in baseball. That is cause for concern in my books. Cincinnati has the oldest team in the league but fortunately -aside from some early issues with the pitching staff- the club has been pretty healthy. But can they keep it up? Old bodies tend to wear down quicker than young players and Jack Cleaves will miss the all-star game because his chronically bad back is acting up. "Nothing serious," says Cleaves with a wave of the hand but when your 38 year old all-star who is hitting .355 and has been plagued by back problems much of his career says his back is bothering him you tend to take it seriously.

Will age catch up with the Cannons? Tom Barrell and Sam Sheppard are a combined 18-4 but each is 37 years old. Al Wheeler is also 37 and presently on a pace to come close to matching his age in homeruns this season. Tom Bird is another member of the 37 year old crew. You have to bet that Ad Doria -who as bench boss of the defending CA champs is also off to Chicago to manage the Continental stars for the second year in a row- is going to spend much of the break trying to figure out how the team can be more consistent on offense.

When you outscore Brooklyn 36-13 in a 4 game series but only leave Kings County with 2 wins there has to be some concern. And that is becoming a trend. In recent series the Cannons outscored Toronto 17-11 but settled for a split and outscored the Sailors 6-1 in a short two game set but also managed to only come away with one victory. Missed opportunities. Something you can not do with any sort of consistency when you are chasing history looking to match the 1924-26 New York Stars while the pack of animals in the CA - most notably of the Wolves and Cougars species- have you in the their sights. Strap in Cincinnati. The second half could be a wild and bumpy ride as the Cannons gun for 3 WCS wins in a row.

• Freddie Farhat of the Detroit World says that the next 2 weeks are going to decide a lot for what Detroit tries to do. The Dynamos are somehow 9 games over 500 despite a slightly negative run differential. If they can maintain this then Detroit management has indicated it will seriously look at dumping their top 2 draft picks for next year and a prospect (and likely a salary dump to make it work) for some bats. The pitching has been steady enough but the offense is a struggle. Positions of need would be OF, 3B and 2B. GM Martin says he will be creative but not crazy in prospects dealing (ie Hackenberry, Kleminski, Johnson and Schaub aren’t going anywhere), but notes the team does have 12 of the top 100 prospects. The Dynamos need some offense if they are going to make a serious run according to Farhat.
• Excitement in Montreal and St Louis as each are thrilled to have 4 players selected to the All-Star Game. The entire St Louis outfield made the Fed squad along with first base Hal Sharp. Rookie sensation Gordie Perkins highlights the Saints selections along with young pitcher Pat Weakley.
• Three All-Star starters were unanimous choices. Bobby Barrell of the Keystones of course, along with St Louis outfielder Cal Page and Cincinnati second sacker Jack Cleaves.
• Some had questioned whether Tom Bird should be starting the all-star game, citing the Sailors Bill Watson as a better option but Percy Suthrland -a long-time Bird-watcher in Chicago points out the following stats for the pair:
  Bird: .389 OBP, .402 SLG, 137 wRC+
  Watson: .355 OBP, .359 SLG, 113 wRC+
  Across the board, Bird is having the better season, say the noted Chicago columnist.
• The Boston Minutemen have lost 10 straight and now sit in 7th place in the Federal Association, 8 games back. There is some good news as the club has learned that Mack Sutton has been given his discharge after missing 3 and a half seasons while in the Army Air Force and will return shortly after the all-star break. Sutton has a .248 career batting average with 62 homeruns in 410 big league games.
• Veteran infielder Bill Moore wants out of Boston. The 33 year old is having an awful season, batting just .210 for the Minutemen. He is not the only veteran wanting a change of scenery. Moxie Pidgeon says he is tired of being a back-up in Pittsburgh and the 38 year old wants a trade.
• Bad luck for Bob Riggins of the New York Stars. Called up to make his major league debut just two weeks after winning his second straight Christian Trophy and AIAA championship with Grange College, the first overall draft pick hurt his arm and may miss some time over the next month. Riggins did get into 5 games and hit .273 including a 2-for-4 showing in his big league debut, an 8-3 win over the Sailors. His first hit was an rbi single off of veteran righthander Doc Newell.
• Hard to complain when you are a half game out of first but every year it seems the Cincinnati under perform on the pyth. record. The Cannons are -5 so far this season with an actual record of 48-31 vs an expected record of 53-26. That, coupled with Toronto's +3 and the Cannons should be enjoying a 7.5 game lead right now. A split of 4 games in Brooklyn illustrates the Cannons lack of ability to get hits at the right time. They outscored the Kings 32-13 in the 4-games but settle for going 2-2.
• George Thomas with Pittsburgh after being claimed on waivers: 7 innings, 12 hits, 10 walks, and 9 runs. Percy Sutherland can only plead: Please retire George, for your own dignity.
• Fast tracking in the Chiefs organization: 6th round pick Johnny Anderson hit .407/.452/.556 in his first 6 games at class A. The organization just moved him up to class AAA Fort Wayne and had manager Frank Krick set the lineups. The veridct- Johnny is now batting third for the Warriors.
• Last week delivered our second minor league no-hitter of the season. This one was tossed by Vic William of the Class B Fresno Falcons. The 1942 7th round draft pick of the New York Gothams threw the first no-hitter in Fresno history and first in the COW League in nearly three years. FABL has not had a no-hitter this season and just one -by George M Brooks of the Keystones last June- since 1942.
• Speaking of the COW League, congratulations to Art Goins on being named that loop's top performer last week. The son of legendary catcher T.R. Goins is a 21 year old centerfielder for Salem in the New York Stars system. A second round pick back in 1941, Goins is hitting .271 with 5 homers this season, his first full year in Class B.

EUROPEAN BOXING IS ON THE UPSWING

We are starting to hear that boxing is returning to normal in Europe. While no major fights have taken place yet there are a number of mid-level fighters returning to action include Harley Bellars. The veteran English scored an unanimous decision over Frenchman Jean-Claude LeGrand in London Saturday evening to run his record to 19-16-1. What was especially interesting from that bout was the Edouard Desmarais -the great middleweight who worked as part of the French resistance in the later stages of the war- was ringside and hinted he would be preparing for a comeback.

Desmarais was 34-0 and considered a future titleholder until the war changed his plans. Contact with the 29 year old had been lost and for a stretch he was feared dead until a chance meeting in Paris with a former opponent of Desmarais after the Allies had ended the Nazi occupation revealed the French middleweight was still alive. Desmarais says there is no timetable for his return, simply saying he was starting to work himself back into fighting shape.

Meanwhile, postwar history was made as the first Polish-born boxer fought in England since before the hostilities began. It was a TWIFB reader favourite as well as Pietrek "Soda" Popinski made his post-war debut in London against Owen Styles. Popinski, who fled Poland during the tumultous period the Russians were running the Nazi's out of Warsaw, ended up in Finland for a brief period of time before arriving in Scotland early in the spring. He had won his first 8 bouts in his native country but last fought in 1939 so the rust clearly showed in absorbing an unanimous decision loss to the 30 year old British fighter.

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 7/08/1945

• Four more Japanese tinder box cities were blasted into flaming cauldrons in an early week pre-dawn raid by a record fleet of almost 600 B-29 Superfortresses. The air attacks would continue all week.
• President Truman presents the United Nations charter to Senate asking for it's swift approval.
• Australian forces captured 2 air bases as they continue to push forward on Borneo.
• General Carl A. Spaatz, who commanded the US Air Forces in the strategic warfar which destroyed German resources from the air, will direct the strategic air attack on Japan.
• Strikes continue to be an issue, both in the newspaper industy where many papers in the northeast are affected and in Akron, where President Truman has ordered the navy to seize the Goodyear Tire and Rubber plants, scene of a persistant 19 day strike. Truman acted after the union refused to abide by repeated War Labor Board orders for the nearly 17,000 strikers to return to work.
• The Civil Aeronautics Board authorized 3 airlines-Pan American Airways, American Export Airways and Transcontinetl & Western Air, to fly transatlantic routes to Europe.
• An alleged 'legal' Wall Street scheme to deprive the US Treasury of $500 million in taxes each year is being investigated by Congress. It is described as a simple, but sounds anything but to the layman, forming a tax-free but 'fake' public ownership by the formation of 'non-profit' corporations and then issuing bonds against the revenue on the property.